Door-operating device



G. FREEZE DOOR OPERATING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 6, 1920.

1,361,707, I Patented D60. 7, 1920.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GREEN FREEZE, OF CLIFFORD, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOB 0F GIVE-HALF T0 JOHNDBAPEB, OF CLIFFORD, ILLINOIS.

DOOR-OPERATING DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 7, 1920.

Application filed August 6, 1920. Serial No. 401,809.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GREEN FREEZE, a citizen of the United States,residing at Clifford, in the county of Williamson and State of Illinois,have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Door-OperatingDevices, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in an apparatus for opening andclosing doors, more particularly to the doors in the galleries andpassageways of mines and similar localities, and has for one of itsobjects to provide an apparatus of this character operative by anapproaching vehicle or draft animal, which will be automatically closedwhen the opening mechanism is released by the departure of the vehicleor animal.

WVith these and other objects in View, the invention consists in certainnovel features of construction as hereinafter shown and described andthen specifically pointed out in the claims, and in the drawingsillustrative of the preferred embodiment of the invention.

Figure 1 is a plan view of the improved apparatus installed in aconventional mine gallery or passage and partly in section.

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional elevation on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a transverse section on the line 33 of Fig. 1.

The improved apparatus may be installed in connection with many kinds ofpassageways in which doors are employed but is designed moreparticularly for use in connection with the doors in mine galleries andpassageways, and for the purpose of illustration is shown thus applied,the floor of the gallery being represented at 10, the side walls at 11and the roof or ceiling at 12. The usual mine car track 13 is locatedupon the floor 10.

The doors are represented at 14, and are movable when open into pockets15 in the side walls 11.

A transverse track 16 is supported from I the ceiling 12, and hangerdevices 17 are connected to the adjacent upper corner of each door andtravel upon the track. If required short tracks 18 will be located inthe bottoms of the pockets 15 upon which supporting wheels 19, carriedby the doors, travel, to support the outer portions of the doors andsiderable distance from the doors and eachprovided with a spring 23.

Pivoted at 24 to each end of each of the links 21 is a bar or rod 25,each rod being directed reversely oblique from its pivoted end towardthe rods 22, and at their outer ends the bars are curved laterally andterminate in eyes 27 engaging respectively around the rods, and againstthe springs as shown.

The springs thus exert a constant force against the rods and maintainthe doors yieldably closed or with their confronting edges in closeproximity.

By arranging the bars reversely oblique, they present elongated V-shapedsockets above the tracks 13, so that a vehicle, such as a mine carapproaching from either direction will engage the bars and move theircontiguous ends toward the walls 11 and carry the doors into openposition. This action of the bars compresses the springs 23.

The car or other vehicle while passing through the doorway retains itspressure against the bars 25 and links 21, and when the vehicle passesbeyond the doors the pres-' sure against the bars at the departing sideis removed so that the reaction of the springs 23 will close the doors.

The doors are thus operative by a vehicle approaching from either side.

The bars 25 are also operative by a draft animal approaching from eitherdirection, the collar of the horses acting on the bars.

The apparatus is simple in construction, positive and sure in itsaction, and requires no attention from the occupant of the vehicle orthe driver of the animals.

The preferred embodiment of the invention is disclosed in the drawingsand set forth in the specification, but it will be understood that anymodifications within the scope of the claims may be made in theconstruction without departing from the principle of the invention orsacrificing any of its advantages. 7

Additional springs 28 may be employed to coact with the springs 22, torender the return of the doors to closed position more certain.

lVhat is claimed is:

1. In an apparatus of the class described, a closure movabletransversely of a passage- Way, a bar directed obliquely to the pathwayof the closure and movably connected to the same, and a spring exertingits force constantly longitudinally of the bar.

2. In an apparatus of the class described, coacting closures movableaway from and vtoward each other transversely of a passageway, barsmovably connected to the closures and directed reversely oblique to thepathways of the same, and a spring exerting its force constantlylongitudinally of each bar.

3. The combination with a passageway having laterally directed pocketscommunieating therewith, a track transversely of the passageway,closures having hangers engaging said track and movable into saidpockets, a bar movably engaging said closure and directed obliquely tothe path of the same, and a spring exerting its force constantlylongitudinally of the bar.

l. In an apparatus of the class described, a closure movabletransversely of a passageway, a bearing rod attached to the outer edgeof the closure, a link attached to said rod, a bar pivoted at one end tosaid link and directed obliquely to the path of the closure, and aspring exerting its force constantly longitudially of the bar. 7

5. In an apparatus of the class described, a closure movabletransversely of a passageway, a guide rod, a spring upon the rod, a bardirected obliquely to the pathway of the closure and movably connectedat one end to the same and slidable at the other end upon the, rod andagainst the spring, the spring exerting its force constantlylongitudinally of the bar. V

I In testimony whereof I afiix my signature hereto.

his GREEN FREEZE mark Witness his mark TIMOTHY FREEZE, JAS. MONTGOMERY.

